Comparing and Contrasting Tom Sawyer, Huckleberry Finn, and Aunt Polly

          I have been reading Tom Sawyer over the past two weeks. I would consider this as one of my favorite school books. There are so many parts in this book that I love. I like the characters, their adventures, and the fact that even though Tom and his friends are always out causing trouble, Tom is always brave and will do the right thing if he wants to. I have also been learning about comparing and contrasting, so in this essay, I will compare and contrast three characters from the book; Tom Sawyer, Huckleberry Finn, and Aunt Polly.

          Aunt Polly is Tom’s aunt who has raised him since his parents died. However, it is very hard for her to take care of the boy when he doesn’t listen to what she says. Tom is always running off and causing trouble. In fact, the book begins with Aunt Polly walking through the house calling for Tom, but he will not answer because he is not home.

          The aunt and nephew have almost nothing in common, except for the fact that they are family. However, they are both very brave and have strong courage. Also, they are both very caring. Aunt Polly’s care for people is very obvious. Tom always seems to be careless, but when he and Becky are stuck in the cave, he shows bravery for Becky and his care for her too.

          Finding the differences between or contrasting the two characters is quite easy, for, as you can see, they do not have much in common. First, Aunt Polly is a polite person who knows enough to not get into trouble. Tom Sawyer, on the other hand,, and every time he turns a corner, he is either about to get in trouble, or in trouble, even if he wasn’t the one who deserved the punishment. Aunt Polly can obey orders, but Tom seems to do almost anything he can to not obey the rules. For example, Aunt Polly forbade Tom from playing with Huckleberry Finn, but Tom does anyway because all of the mothers do not like him.

          Now that I have mentioned him, let me move on to Huckleberry. Huck is one of Tom’s best friends. Finn has no parents and; therefore, does whatever he wants. This is why the mothers do not let their children play with him; they think he would be a bad example. This is probably true, for Tom and Huck are always sneaking out at night, pretending to be pirates and actually finding treasure, and even running away and living on an island in the river for a few days. Tom and Huck have much in common. They both do not follow rules, they think that they are independent and can live by themselves, and they both keep doing insane things. Huckleberry is more independent than Tom, but he does need to go get food and water from people sometimes too.

          Surprisingly, the boys have more differences than you might think. Both boys are brave, but Huck will back down and try to convince Tom to go back when he gets scared. Most of the time this does not work and Huck ends up waiting for Tom to come back. Another difference is shown toward the end of the book. Tom learns responsibility and becomes more loyal to Aunt Polly. Huck, however, refuses to become more of a gentleman and tries to go back to his previous life.

          As you can see so far, Huckleberry Finn and Aunt Polly are incredibly different. Polly is brave to the end, but Huck is brave until he is not. Aunt Polly cares for most people and tries to help them, while Huckleberry almost only cares for Tom and some of his other friends. Aunt Polly gets things done even if he does not want to. Huckleberry Finn, however, lacks responsibility and does whatever he wants with no limits.

          It is very difficult to see any comparison between Huck and Tom’s aunt, if there even is any. However, I did think of something that they both have in common. Even though Polly punishes Tom, it is because she is trying to teach him not to do bad things. This means she wants the best for him. Also, the fact how she mourns so greatly when she believes Tom is dead shows that she cares about him and loves him as if he were one of her own, like Sid and Mary. Huckleberry may get scared often, but he waits for Tom and will be with him to the end. Huck also gets very sick and forlorn when Tom and Becky are lost in the cave for days. This explains that Finn cares for Tom more than a friend, but as a brother.

          I absolutely loved the book Tom Sawyer. It made me laugh many times, but it also annoyed me how Tom could not stay out of trouble! I think everyone should read this book because not only is reading important, but because it is a very exciting book to read. Even though I already read it, I want to read it until I have it memorized in my head, for I love it.